How I Got The Shot #3
On the 3rd installment of “How I Got The Shot”, we have a photo of Mr. Andre Hall Jr. This photo is an example of the new age of what high school senior portraits look like. The seniors of today have opted out of the cookie cutter studio portraits laying on the floor with block numbers showing what year they graduated. Instead they’ve gone with the fashion styled photo sessions to show their individuality. Case and point Mr. Hall. This was photographed in front of the Devon Tower in downtown Oklahoma City. There’s a nice courtyard area with chairs, tables and enough trees for background filler.
Things used on this photo:
Nikon D800
Lens: 70-200mm f2.8
In this photo, you will see I used natural light for this photo of Andre. It was in the afternoon and the sunlight is coming from his right. The sun was getting low in the sky. You can tell by how his face is lit on the right side of his face but his left side isn’t. I used a shallow depth of field which blurs the background. I was shooting towards the end of my lens at 102mm. By using the end of the longer lens it blurs the background along with using a large aperture.
Camera settings were:
Shutter speed 1/500th of a second (though he wasn’t moving I used a faster shutter speed because it was so much light from the sun and not wanted to let in too much light.)
F2.8 (for shallow depth of field)
ISO 160 (It was enough available light. No need for a higher iso)
Andre Hall Jr.
By using the evening sun it was perfect for this effect of lighting one side of the body. This photo is very easy to make. It’s a portrait of a high school senior showing off his fashion sense and saying I’m ready to take on the world. The chair in the foreground and the chairs, tables and trees in the background are an added plus. If you look deeper you can tell there are windows to the building in the background. By having a shallow depth of field it draws the viewer’s eye to him and nothing else.
This photo was created by:
Sunlight
Chair
Time of day
Correct positioning for shadows
A spiffy blazer
And dapper young man
Thank you for reading. Feel free to ask specific questions if you want to know more about “How I Got The Shot.”
To see other photos of “How I Got The Shot” click here.